Apparatus for regulating pendulum-clocks from a distance



(No Model.)

G. W. MILLARD & J. H. CLARKE.

APPARATUS FOR RBGULATI'NG PENDULUM CLOCKS FROM A DISTANCE.

No. 337,419. Patented Mar. 9, 1886.

N. PETERS. Phom-Lnhn n nu. wnhin mn. D1.

GEORGE W. MILLARD, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, AND JOSEPH H. CLARKE, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNORS TO THE SYNCHRO- NOIIS TIME COMPANY OF PORTLAND, MAINE.

APPARATUS FOR REGULATING PENDULUM-CLOCKS FROM A DISTAllCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No 337,419, dated March 9, 1886, Application filed September 18, 1885. Serial No. 177,438. (X0 model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, Gnonen W. DIILLARD, of Providence, county of Providence,and State of Rhode Island, and Josnrrr H. CLARKE, of Boston, county of Suffolk, and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Regulating Clocks from a Distance, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like letters on the drawings representinglike parts.

This invention has for its object to provide a secondary clock, or a series of secondary clocks,with suitable mechanism actuated by a master-clock,whereby the said secondary clock or clocks may be regulated to keep accurate time in connection with the master-clock.

The invention herein to be described is especially applicable to pendulum-clocks; and it consists in the combination, with an electric circuit, a master-clock, means, substantially as will be described, controlled by the masterclock to close said circuit at predetermined intervals, of a lever pivoted within the secondary clock and controlling the regulating member thereof, mechanism controlled by changes in the said circuit for raising andlowering the said lever, and a segmental contactpiece located in the circuit and governing the transmission of the changes in the circuit caused by the master-clock.

Our invention also consists in the combination, with an electric circuit, a master-clock, and means controlled by the master-clock for closing said circuit at predetermined intervals, of a segmental contact-piece located in said circuit, a contact-pointer cooperating with the segmental contact-piece and determining the transmission of the changes in the said circuit caused by the master-clock to actuate suitable mechanism to regulate the secondary clock, or to actuate suitable hand-setting mechanism in said secondary clock to po sition the hands of the said secondary clock in unison with the hands of the master-clock, or both. The controlling-lever is pivoted within the secondary clock or clocks, and upon one end thereof is suspended a pendulum -rod, while its opposite end supports the actuating mechanism controlling its movement on its pivot. The segmental contact piece is also located within the secondary clock or clocks, and is connected in the main circuit to govern the transmission of the changes in the circuit caused by the master-clock.

Figure 1 shows a diagram of a system for regulating secondary clocks from a distance, together with the segmental contact-piece constructed to actuate the mechanism controlling the secondary clock, together with. a setting mechanism. Fig. 2 shows in top view the controlling lever and its actuating mechanism; Figs. 3 and 4, details to be referred to.

The masterclock herein shown is substantially such as shown and described in application, Serial No. 15%,702, filed February 2, 1885, and consists, essentially, of a disk, A, mounted upon an arbor, a, said disk having a spur, a, which, in the rotation of the disk A, comes in contact with the contact-piece a connected to the main line wire 2. Uponthe arbor a is a gear-wheel, a, which meshes with a pinion, a, mounted upon an arbor, (6, said arbor a also carrying a disk, A, which latter is provided with a spur, a, corresponding to 7 5 the spur a of the disk A, said spur a during the rotation of the disk A coming in contact with the contact-piece a, which latter, through the disk A, is connected with the main-line wire 8, the two wires 2 S forming the main- 8o line-wire circuit with the battery 13.

\Vithin the secondary clock is a main controlling-lever, G, pivoted at c, the arm 0 of the said lever having suspended from it a block,

0 which, by the metal strips 0", supports the pendulum-rod and weight 0 of usual construction, the two pins located at opposite sides of the metal strips 0, determining the vibrating length of thependulum-rod, as usual. The controlling-lever C is raised and lowered upon 0 the pivot 0, to thereby increase or diminish the vibrating length of the pendulum-rod by the following mechanism: a pair of magnets,

M M, in circuit with the battery B, are supported within the boX or frame D, fixed upon 5 the under side of thelever Caud carried thereby. Co-operating with the magnets M M is a compound armature, the opposite sides, E E,

of which are controlled by the springs e e, which latter are adjusted by the adjusting- 10o of the frame D between the pair of magnets.

An upright, f, rigidly connected with the 5 compound armature E E, works in a longitudinal slot, f", in a compound pawl having engaging-points n a", said compound pawl being pivoted to one arm, n, of a bent lever, n

n, (see Fig. 2,) said bent lever fitting loosely upon a shoulder of a gear-wheel, 0. As the armature E E rocks, the uprightf first moves the compound pawl into engagement with the toothed gear 0, and further movement rotates the said gear, which is provided with a screwthreaded hub and turns upon a worm, 0, depending rigidly from the frame of the second ary clock.

The bent lever n nis controlled as to its movement by the springs n n, screwed to the controlling-lever O, rising therefrom and bearing against opposite sides of the arm n of the said bent lever, thereby returning said lever to its normal position and releasing the pawl after it has moved the toothed gear 0. An overhanging piece, 0, secured to the lever O by screws 0 loosely astrides the worm 0, keeping the operating parts in place, and against which the gear-wheel 0 bears in rising to raise the lever C. A counterbalancing wcight, O, is also screwed upon the end of the controlling-lever O, to compensate for pendulum-bobs of different weights, so that the larger portion of the strain put upon the worm o and gearwheel by the weight of the pendulum-bob is taken up by the weight 0'.

The operation of the mechanism herein de scribed for raising and lowering the lever O on its pivot is substantially such as shown in application, Serial No. 167,196, filed June 1, 1885. The segmental contact-piece is located in the secondary clock, and in the main circuit with the battery B, and consists of several curved segments so placed with relation to each other that as a contact piece or pointer, s, wipes over them a continuous contact is insured. The contactpointer s, rotated preferably by the scape-wheel arbor of the clock, is also connected to the main-line circuit with the battery B, and is designed, in co operation with the segmental contact-pieces, to govern the transmission of changes caused in the main circuit by the master-clock.

The segmental contact-piece is divided as follows: Two small curved segments, 8' s placed opposite to each other, are connected to the main-line circuit by wires 4 5; two similar segments, 8" s, are placed each side of one of the first-named segments, and are connected in circuit with the pair of magnets M M, to transmit the current from the mainline to the magnets M M, to insure the regulation of the clock,while two segments, 8 s, are electrically connected with any suitable hand setting mechanism, such as described in Letters Patent No. 290,894, or any other suitable handsetting mechanism to transmit the current to said hand-setting mechanism, the said segments sis completing the circle described by the contact-pointer 8, thus insuring a continuous contact for the said pointer s.

t The disk A in the masterclock is designed to rotate, for instance, once an hour, and the disk A once a minute, the spur a to be in contact with the contact-piece a, say ten seconds, while the spur a is in contact with the contact-piece a one second, so that the main line will be closed by the master-clock an interval of one second each hour, or during each rotation of the disk A.

The segmental contact-pieces s 8 connected by the branches 4 5 with the main lines 2 3, are supposed to be in contact with the pointer s for two seconds each, and said segment 8, upon which the pointers rests, as shown in the drawings, at the completion of the minute, while the segments 3 s are each supposed to be in contact with the pointer for one second.

As the master-clock closes the main line once one second each hour, should the pointer s be rotating substantially synchronously with the disk A of the masterclock, the said pointer would be in contact with the segmental contact-piece s, at which time the circuit is closed, and the current will travel from the battery through. the line 3 to branch 5, segmental piece 8, pointer s, and main line to battery B. Should the pointer s be slow with relation to the disk A of the master-clock at the interval the circuit is closed by the master-clock, the pointer 5, if it be not more than two seconds slow, will be in contact with the segmental contact piece s said segmental contact piece being of sufficient length to lie in the path of movement of the pointer s for one second.

When the pointers is slow and in contact with the segmental piece 8 as described, the current will travel from the battery through the pointers, segmental contactpiece s branch wire 6, magnet M, wire 7, and Wire 2 to battery B.

As the magnet M is energized the arm E of the compound armature is attracted, rocking the uprightf, moving the bent lever,with its attached pawl, throwing the said pawl into engagement with the gear-wheel O, rotating the latter upon the Worm o for a distance of one tooth of the gear-wheel 0,,n1oving the lever G downward, thereby diminishing the vibrating length of the pendulum-rodand increasing the speed of the clock.

Should the pointer s be fast, it will come in contact with the said segmental contact-piece s, and by the similar arrangement of circuits, as just described, the current will pass through the magnet M, and by the intermediate actuating mechanism will raise the lever 0.

Should the secondary clock fall more than two seconds slow, and it should be desired to set the hands, the contact-pointer s will come in contact with the segmental piece s, as the circuit is closed by the master-clock, the current will pass through the said pointer and segmental contact-piece s and by the branch wire 8 to the handsetting mechanism or should the secondary clock be fast, the pointer s will come in contact with the segmental contact-piece s, and the current pass therethrough by the branch wire 9 to the setting mechanism.

If it should be desired to only regulate sec ondary clocks, the detail shown in Fig. 3 may be employed for the segmental contact-piece, the pieces w 20 being in circuit with the main line, while the contact-pieces w 20" would be in circuit with the magnets M M, and the operation of the mechanism actuated by the magnets and the travel of the current would be similar to that previously described.

It is obvious that the lever 0, instead of being employed to lengthen and diminish the vibratory length of a pendulum-rod, may, as shown in detail, Fig. 4, be provided with a rightangle extension, 10, supplied with a pin, 11, working in a longitudinal slot, 12, of the regulating member 13 of a balance-spring, thereby regulating marine clocks with equal rapidity and accuracy that pendulum-clocks may be regulated, as described; or any other suitable modification thereof may be employed without departing from our invention.

It is obvious that the segmental contactpiece may be variously divided and cooperate with a contact-pointer to transmit a current to different branches connected with the different members of the segmental con tact piece independently, and for various purposes. It is also obvious that two armatures co-operating with the magnets M M, and each operating its own pawl, may be employed instead of the compound armature and pawl, if deemed desirable.

It is obvious that the segment 8*, while employed to divide the segments .9 s, that they may co-operate with the pointer s as the clock runs fast or slow, may be of any suitable length to co-operate with the pointer sa delinite interval of time, it being so arranged with relation to the segments 8 s that a continuous contact is preserved from one to the neXt segment.

We claim- 1. The combination, with an electric circuit, a master-clock, and means, substantially as described,controlled by the master-clock,to close said circuit at predetermined intervals, of a lever pivoted within the secondary clock and controlling the regulating member thereof, mechanism, controlled by changes in the circuit,for raising and lowering the said lever,and segmental contact-pieces and contact-pointer located in the circuit and governing the transmission of the changes in the circuit caused by the master-cl0ck, as set forth.

2. The combination, with an electric circuit, a masterclock, and means, substantially as described, operated by the master-clock, for closing said circuit at predetermined intervals, of segmental contact-pieces located in said circuit, a contact-pointer cooperating with the segmental contact-pieces and determining the transmission of the changes in the said circuit caused-by the master-clock,to actuate mechanism controlling the regulating member of a secondary clock, and to actuate handsetting mechanism in said secondary clock independently, as set forth.

3. An electric circuit, circuit-changing devices in said circuit, a contact piece or pointer connected with one terminal of said circuit, and segmental contact-pieces, over which the contact-pointer contiguously travels, said segmental contact-pieces determining the transmission of the current back to the main line, or to such various branch circuits connected with the members of the segmental contactpieces as the contact-pointer may be in contact with at the time the circuit-changin g device is operated, as set forth.

4. The lever G, pivoted within a clock and controlling the regulating member thereof, combined with the gear-wheel 0, having a screw-threaded hub, and the worm 0, upon which said gear-wheel rotates, thereby raisingor lowering the said lever O, as set forth.

5. The lever 0, having the arm 0, supporting the pendulum-rod, combined with the gear-wheel O, overhanging piece 0, worm 0, compound pawl a" of, and means, substantially as described, for normally keeping said pawl out of engagement with the gear-wheel O, magnets M M, its armature E E, controlling the engagement of the compound pawl 11. a as set forth.

6. The lever G, pivoted within the clock, the arm 0, supporting the pendulum-rod, and the counterbalancing -weight 0, combined with the gear-wheel 0, having a screw-threaded hub, and the worm 0, upon which said gearwheel rotates, thereby raising or lowering the said lever O, as set forth.

7. The lever 0, having the arm 0, controlling the regulating member of a time-piece, combined with the frame D, suspended from said lever O, the magnets M M, compound armature E E, and the conirollingsprings e e, the upright-f, and pawl n a, bent lever n n, the springs 1f, toothed gear 0, and worm 0, all constructed and arranged substantially as described.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEO. XV. MILLARD. JOSEPH H. CLARKE.

Witnesses:

B. J. Noyes, O. M. Conn. 

